The following article contains spoilers through Survivor 45 episode 2, which aired on Wednesday, Oct. 4.
What’s better than one opportunity to save oneself from being voted out? Having the ability to do it twice, of course.
I’m referring to Survivor‘s “Shot in the Dark,” a mechanism introduced in season 41 a few years back. Every castaway that’s competed in Fiji since its inception has had an opportunity to use it in the hopes of receiving immunity at Tribal Council. For the cost of one’s vote, a castaway sensing they’re on the chopping block can play the Shot in the Dark, which gives them a one-in-six chance of negating votes cast against them.
During the second episode of Survivor 45, Emily Flippen handed Lulu tribemate Sabiyah Broderick her Shot in the Dark with the intent of garnering trust. Emily and Brandon Donlon correctly identified that they were the two players in danger of being the second boot after they lost the Immunity Challenge.
As history has it, Brandon had his torch snuffed — not Emily.
However, the episode ended with Sabiyah still holding Emily’s Shot in the Dark, and although she’ll likely give it back to her, the fact that the 28-year-old truck driver has two of them, an important question was raised.
Can a contestant play two Shots in the Dark? It’s something that’s never happened before, but host and showrunner Jeff Probst provided clarity about the possible situation after the episode aired.
The Survivor frontman spoke with Entertainment Weekly, and he confirmed that a cast member can use another player’s Shot in the Dark. “And I am waiting for this to happen!” Probst said.
Sabiyah is also under no formal obligation to return it to Emily, just like other advantages that are willingly forked over.
However, Probst shared an important point — players can’t spam Shots in the Dark at the voting ceremony. “You can still only play one Shot in The Dark at a Tribal, so you don’t get two shots at the same Tribal,” he continued.
It’s fun to consider that players can leverage their Shot in the Dark for a plethora of different reasons, like building trust, trading for another advantage, or creating chaos.
Unfortunately for Brandon, he was unable to use his Shot in the Dark before he was voted off. Earlier in episode 2, he competed for a safety without power advantage but fell short. As punishment for tackling the puzzle, Brandon lost the right to vote at his next Tribal Council. For someone to play their Shot in the Dark, they must have a vote to burn.
Survivor airs on CBS and Paramount Plus every Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET/PT.